Abstract
This paper deals with the problem of the influence of ground dampness on heat exchange between greenhouse and ground. The effect of humidity on the distribution of ground temperature fields was analyzed. The analysis was performed based on the analytical numerical method in the WUFI®plus software. The computational tool was used after a validation process. Research and simulations were conducted on the example of a real single-span greenhouse located in Southern Poland. The results of indoor and outdoor air temperature measurements were used to determine the boundary conditions, while the measured ground temperatures were used to compare with the results of theoretical calculations. Three variants were used for calculation analysis, assuming different levels of ground dampness. Analysis of the test results showed that during the summer period, dry ground provides 8% more thermal energy to the interior of the greenhouse than the damp ground, and provides 30% more thermal energy than wet ground. In the transition period (autumn/spring), the ground temperature fields are arranged parallel to the floor level, while the heat flux is directed from the ground to the interior of the greenhouse, regardless of the ground dampness level. During this period, the ground temperature ranges from 4.0 °C to 13.0 °C. Beneficial effect of dry ground, which contributes to maintaining an almost constant temperature under the greenhouse floor, was found in winter.
Highlights
According to statistics maintained by US company Cuesta Roble Consulting, the global area of greenhouse cultivation expanded by 34% over the last 40 years
Dry ground was characterized by a greater ability to accumulate energy, which flows inside the greenhouse during periods of decreasing exterior air temperature
The results of long-term experimental studies allowed the application of computational tools using numerical methods, to analyze the physical phenomena at hand
Summary
Greenhouse facilities are steadily increasing their share of crop production worldwide. According to statistics maintained by US company Cuesta Roble Consulting, the global area of greenhouse cultivation expanded by 34% over the last 40 years. As of January 2019, there is an estimated area of 496,800 hectares (1,228,000 acres) of the world’s greenhouse crops, accounting for 9% of all covered crops. Agricultural greenhouses greatly support the cultivation of crops in a controlled manner, thereby protecting crops from the random effects of natural weather conditions [1,2,3]. It is necessary to look for technical and technological solutions that would allow us to optimize the plant production process in greenhouses, and reduce the maintenance cost of these facilities. One possibility is the use of renewable energy devices and conventional energy-saving devices [6,7,8,9]
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